The Karnak Shriners are proud to announce that the 31st edition of Shrine Bowl Canada will be held on September 30 at 2 p.m. at Concordia Stadium, located at 7200 Sherbrooke Street West in Montreal. This year's match pits the Concordia University Stingers against the Vert & Or of the Université de Sherbrooke. The public is invited to attend this annual family event whose proceeds will be donated to Shriners Hospitals for Children — Canada. Special Shrine Bowl tickets are sold for $10 at the hospital until this Friday at 5 p.m.

Organized by the Karnak Shriners, Quebec, the Shrine Bowl is a celebration and a serious football game, but also a tradition not to be missed. Since 1987, this charity event has raised close to $1 million for the hospital and for care offered to youngsters.

For the 2017 edition, the honorary chairman of the game, Georges Laraque, a former Canadiens player and radio host at 91.9 Sports, Mathieu Lecompte head coach of the Vert & Or at the Université de Sherbrooke, and Mickey Donovan, head football coach of Concordia University Stingers as well as their players and the mascots of both teams unite in communicating a strong message: #CutTheBull

The #CutTheBull campaign

Youth with limitations are twice as likely to experience bullying at school or elsewhere. This fall Shriners Hospitals for Children — Canada will visit schools in Quebec and other provinces to present testimonials from patients who have suffered from this destructive phenomenon. The organizers and teams of the Shrine Bowl 2017 agreed enthusiastically to join in this campaign against bullying and take advantage of the inter-university match to get the message across.

The king and the queen

Two patients from Shriners Hospitals for Children — Canada, Nia, aged 12, and Broden, 11, were crowned Queen and King of Shrine Bowl Canada 2017. Following the press conference players, coaches and the King and the Queen paid a visit to hospitalized children.

Nia is hemiplegic, paralyzed on the right side. She has been treated at the hospital since the age of 1, shortly after her arrival in Canada. Before she was referred to Shriners Hospitals for Children — Canada her parents were told that she would never walk. Nia has spent a lot of time in the hospital over the past 11 years but it has been worth it. Not only does she walk almost perfectly, but she sings and is a professional actress. This year, she is the spokesperson for the #CutTheBull campaign of Shriners Hospitals for Children — Canada because she has been bullied at school and does not want other kids to have to live through the same thing.

Broden has undergone several procedures not far from home to treat clubfoot. Unfortunately his deformity is recurrent and interventions have only had short-term success. As a result, Broden was referred to Reggie Hamdy, M.D., and chief medical officer at Shriners Hospitals for Children — Canada. Broden has undergone an operation this summer and will begin an intense rehabilitation in coming weeks. When he has recovered the other leg will be corrected in a second phase of treatment.

Information

Emmanuelle Rondeau, Shriners Hospitals for Children — Canada, director of business development, communications and marketingEmail, 514-282-6990